Bristleleaf sedge
Carex eburnea · Cyperaceae
A soft, round pincushion of thread-fine, bright green leaves, like a tuft of green hair.
- Size
- 8 in tall, 10 in wide
- Zones
- 2 to 8
- Light
- Part sun to shade
- Flowers
- Grown for its leaves
- Pets
- Not checked
- Job in a bed
- Edging
A bed built around bristleleaf sedge
The planner designed this bed around bristleleaf sedge when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) naturalistic planting in zone 6, part shade. It chose the other plants from the 513 that suit those conditions, and says below why bristleleaf sedge stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Bristleleaf sedge × 6, green leaves
- 2 Spotted dead nettle 'White Nancy' × 8, white
- 3 Blue-stemmed goldenrod × 3, yellow
- 4 Northern sea oats × 5, tan
- 5 Korean feather reed grass × 1, pink
- 6 Hellebore 'Pink Frost' × 3, pink
- 7 Giant snowdrop × 12, white
- 8 Snowdrop × 12, white
Why this plant
- The only plant grown for its leaves. Leaf lasts all season, where a flower lasts a few weeks.
- Part of the matrix. The low fabric of grasses and groundcovers that the taller plants come up through.
- Part of the bed's structure. Shrubs and grasses keep their shape when the perennials die down. So do northern sea oats and Korean feather reed grass.
Why here
- On the front edge. At 8 in it frames the bed without hiding it, and it is in leaf all season. It finishes 36% of the edge.
- 6 plants in 2 runs (3 and 3). Short runs, with other plants between, make the edge a frame, not a ruled line.
- Fine leaf against bold. Hellebore 'Pink Frost' is beside it: the strongest contrast of leaf there is.
Why now
- Here for its leaves, into winter. They cover the 8 weeks between early March and late November when nothing on the plan is in flower.
- Stands through winter. Left uncut, it holds its shape until March, when the perennials have gone.
Planned as a naturalistic planting: low grasses and groundcovers, the matrix, make up 65% of the planted ground. White runs through the planting: 3 of the 7 kinds grown for their flowers have it. The flowering is at its height from early March, with 3 kinds out together.
The planner's own design check: 10 Excellent, 6 Good, 1 Satisfactory. It flags one thing to watch: Northern sea oats spreads aggressively. Each plant's details say more.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where bristleleaf sedge goes in a border
At 8 in it belongs at the front of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is low (6 to 12 in).
Its job: edging. A low, neat plant used in short runs of three or five along the front to finish the edge (or, in a formal bed, in one even row).
A tiny native sedge of limestone woods, for dry shade, rock gardens and the gaps between stones. Mass it for a fine, even texture under trees.
- Dry shade
- Edging a woodland path
- Rock gardens and paving gaps
What to plant with bristleleaf sedge
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Wild columbine: adds the flowers, early May to early June; tall enough (24 in) to stand behind it.
- Christmas fern: tall enough (20 in) to stand behind it.
- Wild ginger: bold leaves against its fine ones.
Questions about bristleleaf sedge
Does bristleleaf sedge need sun or shade?
Bristleleaf sedge grows in part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun), part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning) and shade (less than 2 hours of direct sun, or bright dappled light).
It wants ordinary well-drained soil, on the lean side, with no feeding, and little watering once settled.
What zones does bristleleaf sedge grow in?
USDA zones 2 to 8. It is hardy to zone 2, which means it survives winter nights down to about −40 °F (−40 °C).
Above zone 8 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
How far apart should bristleleaf sedge be planted?
8 in (20 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 10 in (25 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 8 in (20 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many bristleleaf sedge plants do I need?
At 8 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 27 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 16 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 86 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as runs of three or five along the front (or one even row, in a formal bed).
In the bed above, the planner used six in two groups.
What does bristleleaf sedge look like in winter?
Bristleleaf sedge holds some of its leaves into winter, more in a mild year or a sheltered spot, and they look tired by March. Cut the old ones off as new growth starts.
More Carex
- Appalachian sedge Carex appalachica
- Blue sedge Carex flacca
- Blue sedge 'Blue Zinger' Carex flacca 'Blue Zinger'
- Bowles' golden sedge Carex elata 'Aurea'
- Gray's sedge Carex grayi
- Japanese sedge 'Ice Dance' Carex morrowii 'Ice Dance'
- Leatherleaf sedge Carex buchananii
- Orange New Zealand sedge Carex testacea
- Palm sedge Carex muskingumensis
- Pennsylvania sedge Carex pensylvanica
- Sedge 'Bunny Blue' Carex laxiculmis 'Hobb' (Bunny Blue)
- Sedge 'Everest' Carex oshimensis 'Everest'
- Sedge 'Evergold' Carex oshimensis 'Evergold'
- Sedge 'Everillo' Carex oshimensis 'Everillo'
- Sedge 'Frosted Curls' Carex comans 'Frosted Curls'
- Seersucker sedge Carex plantaginea
- Tussock sedge Carex stricta
- Variegated broadleaf sedge Carex siderosticha 'Variegata'
- Variegated Japanese sedge Carex morrowii 'Variegata'
In these guides
- Native plants for shade
- Garden plants native to Canada
- Low plants for the front of a border
- Ornamental grasses under 3 feet
Zone guides: Zone 3 · Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8
Every fact on record
- Type
- Grass
- Size
- 8 in (20 cm) tall, 10 in (25 cm) wide
- Plant
- 8 in (20 cm) apart
- Height class
- Low (6 to 12 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- None: grown for its foliage
- Leaves
- Fine texture, semi-evergreen; green
- Shape
- Mounding, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 2 to 8
- Light
- Part sun, part shade, shade
- Soil
- Lean, well-drained
- Water
- Low
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Cyperaceae
Checked against VASCAN (plants of Canada). Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.